NT Reporter
Pernem
The Pernem mamlatdar has issued notices warning landowners in Tuem of the seizure of their houses and private vehicles to recover unpaid fines, royalties and penalties linked to illegal laterite stone quarrying.
The notices were issued by mamlatdar Ranjit Salgaonkar after the Department of Mines and Geology forwarded a revenue recovery certificate in connection with illegal quarrying activities in Tuem.
The action follows the failure of stakeholders to pay the fines and royalties despite the completion of due process, including the issuance of show-cause
notices. The process of serving notices through the village talathi has already begun, with several landowners receiving penalty demands amounting to lakhs of rupees.
As the lands involved
are jointly owned, notices have been served on all stakeholders, sparking anger and resentment among villagers.
For many families in Tuem, laterite stone quarrying has traditionally been a source of livelihood. Villagers said the government had earlier allowed the activity to continue and was now targeting ordinary residents by initiating recovery proceedings against them.
